Engine maker boosts billionaire’s Concorde sequel
Billionaire Robert Bass’ dream of building a private supersonic jet is poised to get a boost from one of the world’s top engine makers, General Electric.
Aerion Corp is in talks with GE to power what could be the first nonmilitary plane to fly faster than the speed of sound since Concorde flights were halted in 2003, according to a statement this week from the Bassbacked aircraft start-up.
The discussions represent a step towards resolving a major obstacle to Aerion’s plan for a jet that could shave three hours off transatlantic trips — and shorten flights across the Pacific by six.
Aerion, which already has a buyer for its AS2 plane, has been working with the engine manufacturers to meet noise restrictions and fly economically at speeds both slower and faster than the sound barrier.
“The two companies will continue to participate in a formal and gated process to define a potential collaboration for an AS2 engine,” said GE and Aerion. General Electric makes jet engines for large commercial aircraft producers, including Boeing and Airbus planes.
Aerion’s effort to build a supersonic business jet gained momentum in 2014 when Airbus agreed to help design and produce the plane. The following year, Flexjet, a fractional-jet ownership company, placed an order for 20 AS2 aircraft.
General Electric said a final agreement had not been reached.
“We welcome their vision and are excited to continue discussions on engine configuration,” said Brad Mottier, GE’s vice president for business aviation.
Aerion envisions a plane that will fly at a top speed of Mach 1.5 — or 1.5 times the speed of sound — over water, while staying just under the sound barrier when over land to avoid sonic booms. Backlash against the booms and engine noise eventually helped kill flights by the Concorde.
Aerion’s challenge is to sell enough of the AS2 aircraft to offset the investment required to develop costly components, the engine being the most expensive. The list price of the plane is US$120 million ($171m).
Aerion began working on the plane in 2003, only to see its plans interrupted by the 2008-09 recession, which caused demand for corporate jets to plummet. Last year, businessjet shipments were 657, more than 40 per cent down from the peak of 1136 in 2008, according to JPMorgan.